Things Fall Apart
by Leonard 356
Summary: AU: Two months after 8-02. The mistakes made by Beckett in trusting strangers rather than her colleagues and husband come back to haunt her. Two shot with epilogue.
1. Chapter 1

**AN:** A two shot with an epilogue. Castle and it's characters belong to ABC and Marlowe. I own nothing. This entire season has been a disaster with both of the lead characters behaving like idiots. This is one possible way to resolve the present mess the writers have created...

 **One:**

Deputy director Margaret Swanson closed the email and smiled. Her plan had worked to near perfection. Bracken had been one hundred percent correct with his assessment of Kate Beckett. She had been so easy to manipulate.

Project LocSat was nearly back to full strength again, no thanks to Rachael McCord and her team. Swanson never was able to determine why the AG agent and her team decided to look into the program. The disgraced former senator denied contacting McCord or anyone else about LocSat until he took his last breath. Regardless, McCord's actions required a swift and permanent response.

The team of mercenaries that was used for the cleanup had been used many times in the past by the agency for 'off the books' projects. They provided the plausible deniability that kept the agency out of the limelight if something went wrong. LocSat was too big and too far reaching to let anyone or anything stop it. Bracken and Vulcan Simmons had their roles to play and both were sacrificed to keep the secret intact.

The pipeline of heroin from Afghanistan was vital to funding several agency 'special' projects and more than a few politicians that helped make sure those in power remained that way. Bracken had benefitted from this arrangement, but his dirty past came back to bite him, making him expendable. Detective Beckett's not so secret investigation of Vulcan Simmons' ties to Bracken made the drug dealer expendable also. To keep LocSat intact, everyone was expendable. Swanson knew that even she would be sacrificed if needed.

The only thing that had kept Katherine Beckett alive was her relationship with Richard Castle. No one wanted to tempt fate by bringing on the wraith of Jackson Hunt. He was a legend, a myth, the boogyman. He worked for no one yet was always there when needed. It was common knowledge amongst those in power that Richard Castle was protected by Hunt. Many had guessed that he was Jackson's illegitimate son. It only seemed to add to the mythos. Rick had worked for the agency on more than one occasion himself. The last time was not by choice.

The key to buying the time needed for those involved with LocSat to return back to the shadows again was to keep Beckett away from her husband. Richard Castle had the resources and the connections to possibly cause undue attention. That coupled with his ties to Jackson Hunt could cause serious complications.

Sanjay Kumar was an agent working for Swanson that had a strong technical background. It was her idea for Sanjay to become the mysterious AG analyst Vikram Singh. Swanson arranged for both Vikram and the mercenaries to be in New York to find out just how much Beckett knew about LocSat. A single phone call from Vikram proved that everything Bracken had said about Beckett's hubris was correct. Rather than contact the NYPD for support as was standard procedure in such a situation, she went after Singh alone.

Things were going exactly to plan until Castle decided to find his wayward wife. Her mercenaries nearly 'screwed the pooch' by taking him captive. After an angry call, they 'allowed' Rick to escape just in time to catch his wife on the run. Swanson wasn't sure if Beckett knew Hunt well enough to know that he wasn't married. She allowed the mercenaries to pursue Beckett and Singh, but were given orders not to harm either. She then appears at the exact moment when all appears lost to rescue the two as the mysterious Rita. Using the information Bracken provided about Beckett, Swanson was able to create the story about Hunt's estranged wife. She was amazed that Beckett accepted her story without question.

Convincing Beckett to leave her husband was far too easy. All Rita had to do was tell her to leave the case alone and go back to her husband. If Kate would have listened to her advice, her plan would have been ruined, but Swanson was sure that Beckett would do the opposite. She'd already ignored NYPD protocols and lied to her husband. Rita's warning about anyone that dies after this was on her sealed the deal.

Vikram's job was simple. Find out if Kate knew anything about LocSat, keep her occupied chasing leads that went nowhere and keep her away from her husband. Swanson counted on Beckett keeping everything that happened to her a secret from her husband. If she would have enlisted his help, then all of her plans would have changed.

For the last two months, Beckett has behaved exactly as they planned. She avoided her husband and wasted her spare time following leads that Vikram found. Even Swanson didn't plan on Beckett hiring Vikram as a precinct tech analyst. He could make sure that she had no contact with Castle while at work and also allowed him to use NYPD resources to setup the captain when the time was right.

Satisfied that LocSat was secure again and that Beckett knew nothing, Swanson sent a text message to Vikram to initiate phase 2. A 'concerned citizen' sent an anonymous email message to the head of Internal Affairs. The email included photographs of Beckett and Singh leaving a SRO in one of the seedier areas of the city. Other photographs showed the two of them together sharing a meal at a street vendor. The email suggested that the NYPD captain had pulled some strings to get her boyfriend a job working near her. A similar message was sent to the editors of the Daily News, the Times, the Ledger and the offices of Richard Castle Investigations.

Alexis Castle was in the office while her father was still sleeping in the hidden room behind his office. She screened all of the emails and only those that actually pertained to the business were kept. Alexis nearly threw the message away before looking at it as there was no source email address on the note. She opens it and starts to read the message. Opening the photos attached causes the young woman to gasp, 'oh shit'. She saves the message and debates if she should forward it to her father.

Hayley strolls into the office carrying a copy of the Daily News and tosses the newspaper on Alexis' desk. "Have you seen this?"

Alexis picks up the paper and sees the damning picture of Kate with Vikram leaving the seedy SRO. The headline all but convicted her in the eye of the public – NYPD captain abuses her position to secure job for her boyfriend?

"Has your father seen this?" Hayley inquires as she points to the paper. "Do you think that it's true?"

Reflexively, Alexis nearly shouts "No!", but then wonders if her blind faith in Kate was misplaced. "This will kill dad. I've been so hard on him for not giving her space. And now this?"

"This is a bloody mess if I ever saw one... You know, your father asked me to keep an eye on her and I refused, telling him that he had nothing to worry about..." Hayley comments, feeling guilty for her trust in Kate. "You need to tell him before he sees it on the news or is approached by the press..."

"How? How do I tell my dad that we were wrong? That he was right to be suspicious?"

"Tell me what?" Castle asks as he appears from his office, looking like he never slept.

Alexis hands him the paper and the two women wait as he reads the article. "I'm so sorry dad." She offers as his daughter tries to move closer to him. She starts to wrap her arms around him and she can feel him pull away causing her to burst into tears.

Rick lays the paper back on the desk and walks back to his office without a word. He was numb at the moment, unable to process anything other than the shock and betrayal he felt. Alexis' guilt was her own creation. She chastised him for not giving Kate the space she asked for. She defended Kate without knowing the facts.

Castle fired up his laptop and started checking the other New York online newspapers. All of them carrying similar stories. The article in the Ledger was particularly cruel, insinuating that Beckett had been cheating on him for years with Vikram since she worked in Washington DC. Every fiber of his being wanted to believe that this was some cruel hoax. That Kate would never cheat on him in spite of the evidence before him. He was keenly aware of how the press could be manipulated to report whatever someone wanted them to. He wanted to trust her.

A call to Kate's cell phone went straight to voicemail. Either she had her phone turned off, or she refused to answer. A subsequent call to her office yielded similar results.

Little did he know that Kate was busy at the moment. A text message was waiting for her from deputy commissioner Gates requesting her presence at 1PP when she woke in her bed alone. Having no idea what was going on, she drove directly to headquarters and made her way to Gates office. Gates opened the door and gestured for Kate to enter. Her demeanor left no doubt regarding the seriousness of the situation.

Stepping inside the door, Kate can see commissioner Williams and Mark Blum, the director of Internal Affairs. They were seated in the guest chairs as Gates tells her to close the door and gestures for her to take a seat there also. She could tell by the grim expressions on their faces that she was in trouble.

Gates begins to speak as soon as Kate is seated. "Captain Beckett, I'm sure that you know the others in this room so we can dispense with the formal introductions..." Gates slides a copy of the Ledger in front of Kate. "Sometime last night IA received an anonymous email from a concerned citizen. We were unable to identify where the email came from, but were able to trace it back to a NYPD server..." Gates places a printed copy of the message in front of Kate. She reads the message and gasps, knowing that she has been setup by someone. Her first thought was that Castle via Hayley was responsible for this. She quickly discounted the thought believing that even Castle wasn't capable of being this vindictive.

Williams spoke next. "Copies of this email were sent to all of the major newspapers in New York and each one has issued a story similar to the one in the Ledger. I've got a public relations nightmare on my hands and your husband's best friend will not help you this time..."

"I don't understand." Kate replies.

"You failed to show up for work your first day on the job. You broke a dozen NYPD regs. You abandoned your duties as a NYPD captain to assist on a case that you had no business being part of... Need I go on?" Gates replies.

"I was ready to fire you for dereliction of duty, but then I got a call from your husband and the mayor asking me to give you another chance. That you wouldn't let me down." Williams adds.

"Ms Beckett, why did you hire Vikram Singh as your tech analyst?" Blum asks.

"Our analyst was promoted and we had an opening." Kate answers.

"Normally the IT department handles placement of all technology personnel. Did you contact them first?"

"No sir. I thought that I was responsible for that."

Blum offers her a grim look. "How did you know that Mr Singh was capable of doing the job?"

"We'd worked together trying to track down the people that had killed my former team with the AG."

"Did you work with Mr Singh when you worked with the AG's office?"

"No sir."

"Why did the AG's office let him quit his job? I mean he had to be making more money there. Didn't he live in Washington DC?"

"I don't know sir."

"So why was Mr Singh in New York?"

"He told me that he was on the run from the people that had killed the other members of his team."

"Didn't you find it odd that of all the places he could run to that he came to New York?"

"No sir. He said he found a document that I had searched for when I was working at the AG's office. It was tied to Senator Bracken. He assumed that I was a target also."

"Yet he called you asking for your help." Gates adds.

"Yes sir."

Williams speaks now. "So let me get this straight. Mr Singh comes to New York to warn you about a potential threat to you and becomes a victim himself?" Kate can only nod in response. "So a man that you've never met before in your life calls you with an outrageous story and you drop everything, ignoring about a dozen NYPD regs to go to assist him?"

"Yes sir." Kate replies feeling foolish that she let her ego overrule her common sense.

"Did your husband know about this?"

"No sir."

"Before you hired Mr Singh, did you verify his identity?" Blum asks.

"No sir."

"Well I did." Blum slides a document to Kate. "Vikram Singh was a tech analyst for the AG's office for the last thirty years. His body was found in his Arlington condo the same time as McCord and the other members of her team... The man you hired is not him. We tried to reach him at the number that was on his personnel file and found that the number was no longer in service..."

"For the last two months a man that no one can verify the identity of has had free reign to all of the NYPD's computers... If he was as tech savvy as you claim, there's no end to the damage he could have done, or the information that he could have compromised."

Blum slides a copy of the picture of her and Singh walking out of her SRO. "So how long were you and Mr Singh 'involved' with each other?"

The way he said the word 'involved' implied that they were having an affair. "Sir, Mr Singh, or whatever his real name is and I were not having any type of sexual relationship, if that was what you are insinuating." Kate answers, indignant that she had to even answer such a question.

"So you normally find yourself hanging around SRO's in a seedy neighborhood at one o'clock in the morning with your tech analyst? Don't you share a loft with your husband on the upper west side?"

"My husband and I have separated." Beckett replies, embarrassed to speak the words.

"Come now Ms Beckett. Your husband is a multi-millionaire. You're a NYPD captain. Are you trying to tell us that you're living in a seedy SRO?"

"Yes."

"Why?" Gates asks. "Does Mr Castle know about this?"

"Rick doesn't know." Kate answers hoping that they don't press the issue as to why she chose to live in a dump like she was.

"You never told us why you're living in a place like that." Williams asks as he points to the picture.

"I'd rather not say sir."

"Ms Beckett. Do I need to remind you that you are facing serious legal issues if any of what is in this article is true?"

"No sir, but I don't know what you want me to say. I hired Mr Singh. I didn't perform a background check before I hired him. I trusted him at his word. My husband and I have been separated for the last two months and I live in the SRO in the picture." Kate replies sensing defeat.

"You say that you and Mr Singh were not involved in a relationship, yet you and him are seen coming from your apartment at one in the morning... Why would the two of you be together at this time otherwise?" Blum asks, clearly frustrated by Beckett's evasiveness.

For the briefest of moments, she contemplates telling them what they want to hear, that she and Vikram were having an affair. It would be far easier than admitting the truth – that she was using NYPD resources to conduct her own secret investigation after hours. Hell, the media had already branded her an adulterer. One way she gets fired and her reputation is ruined. The other way she is fired and possibly in jail for her actions. Either way, her marriage would be collateral damage because of her hubris.

Castle. For the first time since she entered the room did her thoughts go to her estranged husband. How nothing she could say to him would ever make this right. How she'd thrown away everything to feed her addiction. "What I do after working hours is really none of your business... I'll save you the trouble of continuing with this kangaroo court. I quit." Kate rises to her feet and lays her shield and her service weapon on Gates' desk.

"IA will still conduct an investigation of your actions and if we find criminal charges are warranted, you will be arrested." Blum adds angrily. "You've brought shame on the NYPD."

"I've brought shame on myself and the only man that ever loved me..." Kate replies as she walks out the door.


	2. Chapter 2 - Confrontations

**Two:**

Rick was nearly out of his office when Martha decides to make an appearance. In her typical overly dramatic fashion, she comes to him calling out "Richard, darling! I'm so sorry", as she tries to give him a hug. Once again, his entire body stiffens at the contact and Martha releases him as if she has been burned.

"Are you mother? Are you sorry for what happened, or are you sorry that you were wrong?" Rick inquires angrily. "Everyone of you seemed to think that I was in the wrong from the beginning. How many times did you tell me that I had to give her space to figure things out? Well I did and this is the result. Are you happy mother?"

The slap came reflexively and hit its mark. "How dare you!" Martha sternly replies as if it's for the benefit of Hayley and Alexis who are watching, too shocked to do anything but gasp. "After everything I've done for you! I deserve better."

Rick rubs the spot on his cheek and smiles. "Thank you mother. You've made this an easy decision. For years, I've taken relationship advice from a woman that is truly incapable of being in one. Take a long hard look in the mirror mother. You're seventy years old and you behave like I did when I was in my thirties. Everyone told me that I was a bad person for the same behavior, yet it's perfectly fine for you?"

Alexis and Hayley look on in shock as Castle continues to speak. "How many 'uncles' did you try to foist upon me growing up? Why do you think I was so possessive of Alexis growing up, never letting anyone near her? Why do you think that I made sure that I was there for her? Because you weren't. Your career was always more important than I was. From the time I was four years old, I was raised by a series of drunken nannies and boarding schools. I had to endure the taunts from the other kids who knew that I was a bastard."

Martha's face seems to harden as she cannot offer a defense to everything he says. Rick can see that she is tuning him out as he starts to soften his tone. "Think about it. Why did I marry Meredith? Because she was a younger version of you. I wanted your acceptance so badly that I married a clone of you. That's why you two cannot get along, because you're one and the same. I've never regretted my time with her as I got the best thing in my life from it, Alexis. For that, I will forever be grateful to Meredith."

"I love you mother. I will always love you, but you are wrong about so many things. I don't want to end up like you. I'm sorry, but I want the dream and I'm going to get it somehow. I hoped that it would be with Kate..." His voice trails off as if he knows that dream has turned to nightmare. Rick continues on to the door opening it. "I need some time..." He walks out the door leaving three stunned women in his wake.

Minutes later, he's staring out the window of the cab as it makes its way through the morning traffic. The cab comes to a stop and he pays the driver as he exits. Castle walks along the path to the playground, to the empty swings. He lowers himself down and waits as the rubber bottom flexes around his hips. Castle stares straight ahead seeing nothing as his mind replays the events of the last two months. Never had he felt as alone as he did at this moment. Everyone and everything that he loved was slipping away from him.

"I knew you'd be here." The voice came from behind his seat, startling him from his thoughts. He turns to see Kate approaching, her eyes red and puffy from crying. She closes the distance between the two of them, trying to appear more in control that what she actually was. She clasps the chain of the swing beside Castle to steady herself as she asks. "May I sit?"

Castle simply shrugs his shoulders in response and gestures for her to sit. She lowers herself into the swing and watches as Rick sits there looking straight ahead in silence. Kate knew that he was waiting for her to speak. She was keenly aware that what she said in the next few minutes will affect the rest of her life. Beckett knew that opening with an apology would infuriate Castle, as she would feel the same way if the roles were reversed. Telling him that she loved him wasn't enough either. 'Actions speak louder than words', was one of Johanna's favorite sayings because it was true. Kate couldn't help but smile at the mental image of her mother scolding her for behaving so badly to Castle.

Several minutes had passed with neither one speaking. Finally Kate breaks the silence. "I fucked up everything Rick..." Rick sat there still looking straight ahead, expressionless. "I let my ego write checks that others had to pay for me. I made the man that I love suffer needlessly for something that he had nothing to do with. I lied to you by keeping secrets. I let myself be manipulated by people. People that wanted us apart. They told me how you and your family would be in danger if I stayed with you. And I believed them..."

Kate looks at Rick who is still sitting there like a statue wondering if he is even listening to her. She had no idea if anything she is saying was getting through to him. She presses on. "I know that you've seen the pictures and probably read the articles by now. You have to believe me, I would never be unfaithful to you. Vikram, or should I say the man that I thought was Vikram, was nothing more than a tool to use in my quest to get justice for my team's murder. He claimed that he could help me find out who was behind it all... All he did was keep me chasing leads that went nowhere..."

She looks again at Castle hoping for some type of acknowledgement that he has at least listened to her. She knew that she had no right to expect anything from him. She'd thrown away everything, pushed aside the people that she should have trusted and placed her faith in total strangers. The longer Rick sat there silent, the less hope she was able to hold on to. She waits as Castle purses his lips as if he's about to speak. "Please say something Rick." Beckett pleads, holding back her tears.

"What do you want me to say Kate? You walked out on me without an explanation as to why, telling me nothing more than you'll be back someday. You let me think that I had done something wrong. You let my family and your friends think that I did something wrong. You let your addiction take control without considering the consequences once again. You promised me no more secrets and hours later walked out the door because of one."

Kate listened, knowing that every word he said was true. She did lie to him. She did let him think that he was the reason for her leaving by not telling him why. She let her friends believe that her leaving was Castle's fault somehow. "Rick, I..." Kate starts to speak, but Castle holds up his hand to silence her."

"You wanted me to trust you when you clearly don't trust me. You've never forgiven me for what happened on our wedding day. I lived with that guilt of not knowing. I went to seek help to uncover my memories. You saw the video that I left in Montreal. You saw the bullet wound on my body. Whatever I was involved in besides the rescue of my former classmate was serious enough for me to ask to have those memories removed... Every day I wonder what I was involved in. You preyed upon my guilt, using my disappearance as justification for you lying to me..."

Rick sighed, and shifted a little in the swing. "You say that you weren't unfaithful to me with Vikram, but you were. We promised each other that we would be partners in all things. You chose to abandon me and take Vikram as your partner on your quest for justice... However you want to rationalize your decision, the fact of the matter is that you chose a total stranger over me and I'm not sure that I can ever forgive you for that."

Kate fought back a sob as she listened to Castle, the defeated tone in his voice signaling that he is giving up. Giving up on her. "I'm so sorry Rick. I've been such a fool and now I've lost everything. My job, my reputation and I can't afford to lose you... I love you."

"You can't lose what you threw away Beckett. No one forced you make the choices you did. You have to own them because they belong to you and nobody else. I was never allowed to be part of the process... And as for loving me, all I can say is actions speak louder than words..."

Kate sat there in the swing beside him sobbing quietly, sure that this was the end. Castle using the same cliché that her mother always used seemed to cut that much deeper. He was right. Every time she has told him that she loved him since this whole disaster began, preceded her doing something to hurt him again.

Rick seemed unfazed by her tears as he reaches into the pocket inside his coat and produces a folded piece of paper. "I love you Kate. I've loved you from the first case we worked together. I never wanted anything for you but the best. That's why I stepped aside and watched as you had relationships with Demming and Davidson. I was willing to sacrifice my own happiness for yours because that's what you do when you love someone."

"But I've decided that I'm entitled to happiness also. And I'm going to find it, somehow, some way. So here's the deal." He shakes the paper in his hand for her to see. "These are dissolution papers. I've already signed them. Our prenup guarantees that you'll be financially secure for the rest of your life. Sign them, you can walk away and never see me again... Or, we take the next flight out of New York and start a new life, a do-over for both of us. You never work in law enforcement again, not even a school crossing guard. Like an alcoholic to a drink, as long as you're working in law enforcement, the temptation will be there. There are millions of other worthy causes to devote yourself to that won't require you putting your life in danger. Call me selfish, or greedy, but I can't settle for a part-time wife any longer... This is a one time offer and is non-negotiable." Rick hands her the dissolution papers to prove he is serious.

Her sobbing has subsided listening to Castle's ultimatum. She opens the document to verify that they are what he said they were and sees his signature already on the papers. The stubborn part of her bristles at the thought of Rick giving her an ultimatum and she wrestles with the idea of tearing up the papers, walking away. The sensible part of Beckett tells herself that she forced him into this. That her lies and secrets left him with no choice. That things could never go back to the way they were. Too many bridges have been burned by her choices. The fact that he was willing to run away with her should have given her hope. The fact that he was willing to try after everything that has happened between them was proof that he still loves her.

Rick is sitting still in his swing, waiting and watching as she stares at the document before her. Assuming that her hesitation is acknowledgement of her desire to end things, he reaches into his coat pocket and extracts a pen. He extends his arm, offering the ballpoint. "Here, use my pen."

She stares at him as she wipes a stray tear from the corner of her eye. "Is that what you want Rick?"

"What I want has never mattered to you." Castle knew that it was a low blow, but was sure that he'd already lost her.

She takes the proffered pen, removes the cap, and hastily signs her name at the bottom of the document. Kate puts the cap back on the pen and hands it back to Rick. "Are you happy? Is this what you wanted? You gave up on me first as you've already signed this." She shakes the papers in front of him to prove her point.

"No Kate, you gave up on me the moment that you chose to go down another rabbit hole and walked out of the loft without an explanation. You signing these papers now is nothing but a formality..." He extends his hand to take the papers back from her.

"You won't get rid of me that easily..." She extends her arms with the papers in her hands and proceeds to slowly tear the document to shreds, letting the fragments be picked up by the wind and scattered around them. Castle starts to get up from his swing, but Kate is out of hers first, blocking him. "I love you Richard Castle and nothing will change that. I've made mistakes and I will have to pay for them for the rest of my life. I won't lose you without a fight."

Rick pulls his iPhone from his pocket and presses a few buttons. He stares for a few seconds and then smiles. "There's a flight to Bali leaving JFK at 6:00 pm. First Class. We've got time to pack a bag and get our passports..."

Kate closes the distance between them and wraps her arms around him. "So what are you waiting for?" She kisses him on the lips and smiles. Kate releases him and grabs his arm tugging him from his seat. "You coming Castle?"

 **AN:** I always felt that there was a double standard in the storyline with Rick and Martha. From the very first episode, Martha was portrayed as a woman on the prowl, yet it was seen as either cute or funny. Her failed marriages ended up with her broke and living with Rick yet she has no problem dispensing relationship advice to her son. How many times during the run of the show did Martha emerge in the morning doing the walk of shame or hung over from a hard night of partying?


	3. Epilogue

**Epilogue:**

 _ **December 23, 2020:**_

Kate Rodgers sat on the deck of her home overlooking the Pacific ocean as she took a sip of her coffee and smiled. Alex would be home with the kids from daycare in a few minutes. She still thought of him as Rick regardless of what his name now was. Her thoughts drift back to their confrontation on the swings and their last day in New York as Richard Castle and Katherine Beckett. How what started as the second worst day of her life could be the catalyst for everything that has happened since.

Two weeks alone together in Bali was just what they both needed to realize just how much they truly loved each other. They both knew that eventually they would have to 'face the music', but wanted to delay it as much as possible. The media frenzy in New York died during their absence and some other poor schmuck became the target. After a few calls from Rick's lawyers, a 'guy he knew' in the Justice Department and the mayor, the NYPD decided to close their investigation into any alleged wrongdoing by Kate.

They both knew that all ties to New York had to be severed if they were to have any chance together. The house in the Hamptons was sold while the loft was given to Alexis. Richard Castle Investigations was sold to Hayley with Alexis as her partner. Rick changed his name back to Rodgers and Kate surprised him by taking his last name also.

The first three months after leaving the city were spent traveling the world, simply seeing all of the places that they never seemed to find the time for. The original plan was to spend a year, but when she found out she was pregnant, they decided to return to America. The next six months were spent searching for a new place to call home and preparing it for their first child together. Choosing a new location to live proved not as difficult as what it could have been. After Kate quickly eschewed the ideas of a ranch in Montana and a vineyard in Napa, they decided on an ocean front home near Carmel.

The couple managed to stay busy during the initial stages of her pregnancy with their new home, but soon Kate felt the itch to do more. They both knew and understood that she would never be happy as a stay-at-home mom. Deciding to pursue her original dream, she started with on-line courses and then finished at San Jose State to obtain her degree in law. While Rick was initially worried about what had happened to her mother happening to her, he understood her need to find justice for others.

Kate and Rick went to counseling every week and were able to work through their issues. It was sometimes painful, but they both knew that it was necessary. It would take years and two children to rebuild the trust between them. Kate started her own law firm in the city. Most of her cases involved petty disputes between neighbors that had more money and ego than common sense. She would occasionally take a pro bono case where an actual criminal was involved, but kept her promise to not let it take control of her.

Alexis and Rick made amends quickly and the redhead loves the role of big sister. Martha was a different story. It took the birth of their firstborn Eric, for Martha to swallow her pride and make peace with her son. Things remain stilted between Rick and Martha still, neither side willing to give on their stand. Jim relished the role of grandfather and was planning on moving to the west coast next year when he retires.

Ryan and Esposito were slow to come around feeling betrayed much like Rick did with Kate for shutting them out of her 'quest'. The fact that she was back with Rick and he forgave her went a long way towards their acceptance of her apology. Things with Lanie were never quite what they were before LocSat. Kate's 'lies by omission' led the ME to think that Castle was responsible for Beckett's leaving Rick and she treated him horribly as a result.

Margret Swanson, aka Rita, was found dead of an apparent heart attack while Rick and Kate were in Bali on their 'honeymoon'. It was a minor news item in the DC papers. A few weeks later Sanjay Kumar died in an automobile accident. The police report stated that alcohol may have been involved. Over the next six months all of the original members of LocSat that were involved with the deaths of McCord and her team were dead themselves. LocSat on the other hand, continues under new management, to no one's surprise.

Jackson hunt would make sure that his family was safe...


End file.
